First solid proof of Mahabharata? 2000BC chariots unearthed in UP

A new excavation of royal burial pits says a lot about our history

For the first time in the Indian subcontinent, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has stumbled upon royal burial pits at Sanauli in Uttar Pradesh, about 60km away from Delhi. And what do they contain, you ask? To start, there are remains of chariots dating back to 2000-1800BC which, according to experts, could even help date the Mahabharata period.

“Previously, chariots were found to be a part of Mesopotamia, Georgia and Greek civilisations. But the Sanauli recovery shows we were on par with them,” SK Manjul, director of Institute of Archaeology under the ASI, toldThe Pioneer. He added that the Bronze Age chariot findings mean that people of that era belonged to the warrior class and led highly sophisticated lives.

SK Manjul at the excavation site. Photo: Getty Images

The chariots are a lookalike of the ones found in contemporary cultures like Mesopotamia, with a solid wheel and no spokes. The royal burial pits, in addition to the chariots, also contain copper antenna swords, mirrors with copper, daggers and highly decorative coffin covers. Put together, all of this means that the society at the time was technologically advanced and had a sense of art, craft and aesthetic.